Counterpoise



Aug. 5 ,f 1924;

B. P, JOYCE .GOUNTERPOIS Filed July '7,v

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3mm/wv Bryan PJoyce Patented Aug. 5, 1924.

BRYAN P, JOYCE, DE' WSHINGTGN, BESTE-IGT Oli? COLUMBIA.

COUNTERPOISE.

Application filed July 7, 1922. Serial No. 573,493.

(FILED UNDER THE ACT 0E' MARCH 3, 1883, 22 STAT. L.. 525.)

T0 all lwhom i 'may con-cern.'

Be it. known that l, BRYAN P. JOYCE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of llfashingtonin the District of Columbia.y have invented an Improvement in Counterpoise, of which the following is a specification.

The invention described herein may be used by the Government, or any of its of- [icers or employees in prosecution of work for the Government, or by any other person in the United States, without payment to me of any royalty thereon.

The subject of this invention is a counterpoise intended primarily for use with heavy ordnance but not restricted to such use as it may be employed as a component part of any heavy object mount-ed for oscillation.

The main object of the present invention is the provision of means for varying the effect-ive arm of a counterpoise.

With these and other objects in view which will hereinafter more fully appear the invention resides in the novel arrangement and combination of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

"1n the accompanyinfr drawing and in the description only one trunnion of the oscillatory element is shown with the counterpoise attached thereto and described as the structure connected to the other trunnion would be a duplicate.

A practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation of the counterpoise constructed in accordance with my invention, a fragment of the side plate of the top carriage to which the counterpoise is attached, being shown;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, parts being removed.

Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference:

A fragment of a top carriage side plate is indicated by the numeral 10 in which plate is journaled a trunnion 11, supporting oscillatory parts of the gun and held in placeY by the trunnion cap 12. The trunnion cap 12 is formed with spaced apariL walls or plates the upper edges of which provide cam surfaces 13 and in the opposed faces of which cam grooves 14 are cut, for a purpose soon to be set forth.

Rigidly mounted, on the trunnion are arms 15 formed adjacent their outer ends with longitudinally extending slots 16. Mounted between the arms 15 is a counterpoise cylinder 17 whichY is encircled by a trunnion band 18carrying trunnions 19. slidable in the slots 16 and preferably mounted in ball bearings 2O as shown.

The trunnion band is formed with depending bracket arms 21 in which is mounted a shaft 22 the ends of which project into the cam grooves 14 and are by preference surrounded by ball bearings 28, shown most clearly in Fig. 3. Y

Since the details of construction of the counterpoise itself form no part of this invention only a general description thereof is given.

One element of the counterpoise, which may conveniently be a piston rod or the like, has an end 24, herein shown hemispherical, seated in a recess formed in a bracket 25 provided on the top carriage. A bellows like covering 26 may jointhe cylinder 17 and the other element of the counterpoise to protect the parts from dust or other foreign substances.

In practice the device operates in the following manner.

The counterpoise contains an expansible iiuid under pressure, the pressure being selected according to the weight of the parts to be oscillated. As the parts are rocked on the trunnion 11 to elevated position the arms 15 are moved from normal position, shown in full lines Fig. 1, toward the position shown in dotted lines. This movement will cause the trunnions 19 to ride on the cam surfaces 13, and the ends of rod 22 to ride in the cam grooves 14 thereby sliding the trunnions 19 yin the slots 16 toward the outer ends of the arms 15.Y The further out the trunnions slide, theJ pressure Within the counterpoise remaining constant, the greater will be the moment tending to turn the trunnion. Vith gradual decrease in pressure in the counterpoise as the parts are elevated, the greater length of eiective crank arm Will tend to compensate therefor.

I claim:

l. The combination with a support having a bracket and a bearing and spaced apart cam plates above said bearing, of a trunnion journaled in the bearing, arms rigid on the trunnion and embracing the cam plates, said arms slotted, a counterpoise mounted between the cam plates characterized by a cylinder, a plunger Working in the cylinder and pivoted in the bracket, a trunnion band rigid on the cylinder, trunnions on the band and extending into the slots of the arms and in position to ride on the cam faces of the cam plates, arms extending from the band and a shaft journaled in the arms with its ends riding in the cam grooves.

2. The combination With a support having a bracket, a bearing and cam plates rising above the bearing, cfg a trunnion journaled in the bearing, crank arms rigid on the trunnion, counterpoise mounted between the cam plate, characterized by the plunger pivoted in the bracket and means carried by the counterpoise and cooperating with the crank arms and the cam plates to Vary the effective arm of the counterpoise.

3. The Vcombination with a support formed with a bracket, a bearing, and cam plates rising above the bearing; of a trunnion journaled in the bearing, crank arms mounted on the trunnion, a counterpoise interposed bet-Ween the bracket and the crank arms and means cooperating With the cam plates to vary the effective arm of the counterpoise.

4:. The combination with a bearing, of cams associated With the bearing, a trunnion journaled in the bearing, a counterpoise, a connection between the counter poise and bearing and means connected to the counterpoise and cooperating With the cams to vary the eiective arm of the counterpoise.

BRYAN P. JOYCE. 

